In 1952, Arnold Henry Kegel published “Stress Incontinence and Genital Relaxation; A Nonsurgical Method of Increasing the Tone of Sphincters and their Supporting Structures” hereafter, “Nonsurgical Method,” in the journal Ciba Clinical Symposia. In the article, Kegel argues that the pubococcygeus muscle, a pelvic floor muscle that stretches from the pubic bone to the tailbone, is a crucial structure that provides control over specific sphincters and support for pelvic organs. When pelvic floor muscles, including the pubococcygeus, weaken or relax, prolapse of the uterus and urinary incontinence can result. Kagel argues that women can strengthen their pubococcygeus, and therefore avoid those conditions, through muscle education and resistive exercises, which as of 2025, some researchers call Kegel exercises. “Nonsurgical Method” was one of the first papers to provide an alternative to surgery for treating bladder and reproductive problems that are especially common in women who have given birth.